Unreality
by TheObscureFluffs
Summary: Sonic's been through a lot of weird and crazy adventures, but when he starts sharing dreams with a Knuckles from a different universe, why is this the most fun? More importantly... why is he falling for the guy? (crossover between Sonic Boom and the main Sonic series)
1. Night 1

"Mmm... huh?"

Sonic sat up, yawning slightly as he took a look around, only to find a large white void. Where was he? Hadn't he just gone to sleep?

 _Ah, wait. I'm prob'ly dreamin',_ he thought. _This dream feels... different, though..._

He got to his feet, then slowly made his way forward, wondering why this particular dream was so empty. It certainly _felt_ like a dream, but at the same time, not so much.

He continued walking, then stopped as a red figure came into view.

 _...Knuckles?_ he wondered, though the figure was too blurry to make out.

He got closer, and the figure slowly took form, its back turned to Sonic. It was definitely much taller and bulkier than Knuckles, but it had the same physical features.

"Hey, Knuckles!" he called out, wondering if he'd actually get a reaction.

Knuckles turned around when he heard Sonic's voice. Only, for some reason, Sonic was now shorter, and his scarf and sports tape were gone.

"Sonic?" he replied in confusion.

"Knuckles?" Sonic asked in reply. "What happened to you?"

He sped around the echidna a few times to get a better look, then tilted his head. "Why would I dream you up lookin' so... different?"

"I was gonna ask the same thing." Knuckles also tilted his head.

Sonic was confused. "Y'mean... you're dreamin' too?" he asked. Was that possible? Could two people be in the same dream?

"Well yeah, I'm dreaming..." Knuckles put a hand to his chin. "But wait, how can you be dreaming if you're part of my dream? A dream in a dream? Is that even possible?"

"I dunno," Sonic said. "Let's see."

He held his hand out, then focused, a small flower appearing on his palm. "Give it a try; something I'm not expectin',"he told him.

"Um, okay..."

Knuckles focused for a moment. Suddenly, a unicorn appeared.

Sonic smirked, giggling playfully. "Okay, wasn't expectin' that. Good job." He walked over and pet the unicorn lightly. "I thought you'd poof up the Master Emerald."

"What's the Master Emerald?" Knuckles asked.

Sonic's eyes widened. "...Okay. You're _definitely_ not the Knuckles I know then."

He leaned back, then fell into a chair that he'd conquered up.

"My Knuckles isn't as buff as you, and he's _way_ shorter," he explained.

"Really?"

Knuckles poofed up a chair as well and sat down, crossing his legs.

"The Sonic I know is taller than you, and he wears sports tape like I do," he explained, gesturing with one hand towards his other arm. "He also wears this brown scarf thing, and his 'haircut' is a little different."

"A brown scarf? And a different quill cut?" Sonic asked, trying to picture it. "Sooo, what, like this?"

He suddenly held a fancy wig that had a small top hat with it. He put it on, then stood up on the chair and posed, a long fancy brown scarf appearing around his neck. "I say, dear boy, I must go at the topmost speed at once!"

He leaned back, hanging his body on the top of the chair only. "My word! My ego seems to have increased tenfold! My head is so big that I can't hold it up any longer, oh no!"

He flopped backwards, landing on the ground behind his chair; it was a dream, so obviously he wasn't hurt.

Knuckles cracked up laughing. "N-no, not like that," he replied. "His is... messier, I guess?"

Sonic peeked over the chair, his dreamt-up outfit disappearing. "Messier?" A shovel appeared in his hand, but he quickly discarded it with a chuckle. "Nah, I won't do another one, don't worry, heh."

He sat back down in his chair. "So, you're from another world or somethin' then? I don't think there's any other echidnas in my world besides the Knuckles I know."

"I... guess so?" Knuckles responded. "I don't know any other blue hedgehogs, or echidnas..."

"Huh. I've dealt with alternate worlds and stuff before, but not one like this." He was clearly intrigued. "Why do you think me and you were brought together specifically then?"

Knuckles shrugged. "No idea. Sorry."

"Ah, I've got nothin' either," Sonic said with a sigh, flopping over the arm of his chair. "But hey, we should probably make the most of it, right?"

"Sure!" Knuckles replied with a grin. "What should we do?"

"Hm..." Sonic looked around. "Well, first off, this place needs a serious redo. Waaaay too much white."

He got off of his seat, then turned to Knuckles. "Hey, I wonder how different your world is from mine," he said. "How 'bout we both conjure up a town from our own world?" he suggested.

"Okay, sure!" Knuckles replied. "You first!"

"Oho! Pressure's on, eh?" Sonic asked with a chuckle. "Alright then, I'll give it a try!"

He ran back to get some distance on Knuckles, then placed his hands on the ground. At first, nothing happened, but the earth suddenly began to shake. A large building emerged from the ground, and many others followed. Soon, there was an entire town, and Sonic looked down at Knuckles from the roof with a big smile.

"Like it?" he asked loudly, waving to him.

"Wow..." Knuckles gazed at the town in awe. "Let me try!"

He concentrated, and soon a small village appeared, occupied by shacks that quite contrasted with the tall buildings in Sonic's town.

"Whoa..." Sonic smiled and hopped down next to Knuckles. "Talk about different, huh?"

He leaned over to nudge Knuckles, then jumped back in surprise.

He felt him. Well, not 'felt' felt, as he couldn't feel his fur or the texture of his bandages, but... he felt his presence.

"Is something wrong?" Knuckles asked.

Sonic looked up at him. "Didn't you, uh... 'feel' that?"

"Hm?" Knuckles thought about it for a moment. "I think I _did_ feel something weird. Try it again."

Sonic raised a brow, then shrugged and reached for Knuckles' hand, gently taking it in his own. He didn't feel its warmth or the pattern on the bandages, but he felt its presence, just like before.

"Huh..." Knuckles had never experienced this in his dreams either. "I can feel it too. Cool!"

"I wonder what's up with that..." Sonic said, releasing Knuckles hand. "This is probably the weirdest dream I've ever had." He shrugged, then looked back up at Knuckles with a smile. "But it's fun!"

"Yeah, it is!" Knuckles agreed. He smiled back. "So what now?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Sonic asked. He curled into a spindash, then zoomed over to the village Knuckles created. "We explore. Can ya show me around?" He was brimming with curiosity.

"Sure!" Knuckles replied with a grin. He took Sonic's hand in his own and led him into the village.

Sonic let out a small confused noise as his hand was taken, but he didn't really mind. He actually kind of enjoyed it.

Knuckles was really excited as he showed Sonic around the village.

"There's Amy's house... Tails' house... 'Meh Burger'... Eggman's lair... oh, and _that's_ where the other you lives!"

Sonic curiously ran inside of the shack that apparently belonged to the other him. "A surfboard? A coconut husk collection?" He chuckled. "Not exactly what I thought a 'me' would have."

He tested the hammock, then hopped on, lounging back on it and looking over at Knuckles. "Don't tell the other me, alright?" He made a 'shh' gesture by putting a finger to his mouth.

Knuckles chuckled. "Don't worry, I won't!"

Sonic smiled and got off the hammock. "What about you? Where do you live?" he asked, walking up to Knuckles.

"Um, well..." Knuckles avoided his gaze uncomfortably. "I...I don't have a home."

"Y'don't?" Sonic frowned sadly. "Why not?"

"I...I dunno." Knuckles shrugged. "I guess I've just never had a place to live. Nature is kinda my home, I guess."

Sonic understood where he was coming from, but still... even he liked returning home from time to time.

"Oh! I know," he said with a chuckle, holding a small key out to Knuckles. "How 'bout a key to my house? It'll work in dreams only, but it's somethin'!"

"R-really?" Knuckles was surprised.

Sonic nodded. "Yup!" He handed the key over. "You'll see it when we explore my place."

"Thanks!" Knuckles tucked the key away into his hammerspace. "Anywhere else you want me to show you?"

Sonic looked around a bit more, though figured that some of his other friends didn't exist in Knuckles' world. "Don't think so," he replied. He grabbed Knuckles' hand, then walked in the other direction. "Heh, hopefully you'll be just as interested with my world as I am with yours!" he exclaimed.

"I can't wait to see it!" Knuckles replied with a grin.

Sonic took Knuckles over to his side of the world, feeling the echidna's excitement, then started speeding around, listing each and every place out for him. A bunch of stores, a bunch of stands, and anything else he could dream up.

"...and then Eggman has a ton of bases 'cause I keep destroyin' 'em," Sonic explained with a soft laugh.

Knuckles laughed too. "What does Eggman look like in your world?" he asked curiously. He smirked. "Does he still have that silly moustache?"

Sonic turned to him and grinned. "Oh. You wanna see?"

He spun around a few times, then gestured his hand out in a dramatic fashion, a statue of Eggman appearing next to him. "Behold, his egginess!"

Knuckles snorted, then started laughing again. "He looks even more ridiculous in your world than in mine!"

Sonic laughed along with him. "It's pretty hard to beat!"

He calmed down, then tipped the statue over, making it shatter. "So I win in the 'most ridiculous Eggman' contest?" he asked, placing a 1st place ribbon on his chest.

"I dunno, you tell me!"

Knuckles conjured up a statue of his world's Eggman.

Sonic stared at the statue, slightly amused, but clearly knowing that he's winning. "Not bad, but I think we both know who the winner is here."

He chuckled, then took out another ribbon and placed it on Knuckles. "You can have a ribbon for bein' cool though!"

Knuckles blushed a little, grinning. "You're pretty cool, too!" he replied.

Even though Sonic had gotten many compliments like that before, this one made him blush slightly. "Heh, naturally!" he exclaimed, jabbing a thumb at himself.

"I was surprised at how cool you were though. The Knuckles of my world's a huge stick in the mud," he said. "It's a nice change of pace, y'know?"

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Knuckles said. "The you in my world is kind of a grumpy pants, and he doesn't even wear pants. You're really fun, though!"

"Really?" Sonic asked, another light blush on his cheeks. "Heh, hard to imagine a me who's so 'grumpy pants'ish."

"It's hard to imagine a me who's..." Knuckles paused. "Uh, what was that phrase again?"

"Stick in the mud, killjoy, wet blanket, spoilsport, guy-who-ruins-all-the-fun," Sonic listed with a wide grin.

"Yeah, that." Knuckles shook his head. "How could a guy like that be me?"

"Eh, he's got his cool moments when he's not all hung up on guarding the Master Emerald. I could tell right away that you were way more fun." He winked. "You smile more."

"So do you!" Knuckles replied. "I mean, more than my Sonic does."

"Can't help it!" Sonic exclaimed. "If I smile, so does everyone around me, right?" he asked. "It's the best feelin' when I go out to save someone and they get this huge grin on their face."

Knuckles smiled. "I like you," he said. "You're even cooler than my Sonic! ...I hope he doesn't find out I said that, though..."

Sonic blushed again. "Heh, it's alright! I'll prove I'm the cooler Sonic if he does!"

He created a statue of what he thought the other Sonic looked like, then threw a few fake punches at it. "I don't care if he's taller! I'm the best hedgehog!" he joked.

Knuckles giggled. "You sure are!"

He blushed slightly. _Did I really just say that?_

Sonic looked over, smiling at Knuckles happily. "Hey, that reminds me! You probably wanna see my house too, right?"

"I sure do!" Knuckles replied.

Sonic took Knuckles past the town, then introduced his house. "It's a lot different from the other me's house, and I don't have a hammock..." He walked inside and sat down on an object that Knuckles couldn't recognize, "but I've got a beanbag chair!" He relaxed back on it.

"Looks comfy!" Knuckles commented.

"It is!" Sonic exclaimed. "Here, give it a try," he said, moving over slightly to give Knuckles room.

Knuckles sat down next to him. "Oooh, this is nice!" he said with a smile.

Sonic chuckled, leaning against Knuckles and placing his hands behind his head to relax slightly. "It isn't really a two-person thing, but I guess we make it work."

Knuckles nodded, copying Sonic and leaning back in relaxation.

Sonic looked over at him, slightly amused. "We've gotta be the two most relaxed guys in the world. We're relaxin' while we're sleeping." He faked a gasp. "What if we fell asleep while we were sleepin'?"

Knuckles' eyes went wide. "What if we had a dream while we were sleeping? We'd be dreaming about sleeping and dreaming about something... can that even happen?"

Sonic held his head and fell off the beanbag chair. "Ugh, my head hurts," he said jokingly.

Knuckles giggled again. "Yeah, I think my brain's gonna explode!"

"Oh no! Seriously?" Sonic asked, standing up immediately, even though he had a playful tone. "We've gotta find a way to stop it!"

He placed his hands on the sides of Knuckles' head, smirking a bit. "We should just focus on dumb stuff; like how less-cool-than-me that other Sonic is." He was clearly kidding, but he wanted to see Knuckles laugh.

Knuckles smirked. "Or how silly Eggman looks in your world!"

Sonic nodded. "Exactly!"

He stepped back, an Eggman outfit appearing on him, complete with a huge mustache. "You won't defeat me this time, Sonic... even though you've beaten me every other time, I swear, I'll..." His voice trailed off as he stroked the mustache. "Drat, I didn't think this through..."

Knuckles laughed.

"Eh, I think that moustache looks better on me!"

An Eggman moustache poofed onto his own face. He did his best evil grin and giggled. "Look at me; I'm an evil mastermind of average intelligence!"

Sonic burst into laughter, clutching his chest. "N-no way!" he argued, trying to keep in character and stop laughing so much. "I'm the only Eggman around here!"

"Oh yeah?"

Knuckles went up to him. "Well, I think _you're_ the fake Eggman around here!" he replied with a grin, lifting a hand and lightly bopping Sonic on the nose.

Sonic held back a chuckle. "Oh yeah? I can throw my weight around better than you!"

He tackled Knuckles without warning, hoping to knock him over.

However, Knuckles was very experienced in this sort of thing, and soon he held Sonic captive in just one of his arms.

"Aha! I got you, faker!" he said with a grin, doing his best impression of Eggman's voice.

"Ah!" Sonic's outfit faded, and he pouted. "Alright, alright, I'm caught." He crossed his arms and pretended to be upset.

Knuckles chuckled. He put Sonic down, and his moustache disappeared.

Sonic pointed to his now lack of a mustache. "Keep it off; I say we both look way better without it," he said with a giggle.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Knuckles giggled too.

"Hm... what else could we do?" Sonic asked, though more to himself than Knuckles. "Never dreamed with someone else before; it's weird, but I like it!"

"Me too!" Knuckles agreed. "Hmm..." He put a hand to his chin. "What do you like to do in real life?"

"I do a lot of running, relaxing, and explorin' new places," Sonic told him. "I love nature."

"Really?" Knuckles smiled brightly. "I love nature too!"

"Y'do?" Sonic asked, looking surprised. He grinned, then summoned a small flower in his hand, holding it out to Knuckles. "For you, good sir!" he chimed with a wink.

Knuckles blushed lightly as he took the flower. "Why thank you!"

He sniffed the flower and smiled.

"Yeah, there's a _ton_ of flower gardens in my world and I visit 'em all the time. Here, I'll show ya!"

The scenery around them faded, and a few flowers garden began sprouting up, surrounding them.

"Wow..." Knuckles looked around in awe. "It's... _amazing_!"

Sonic nodded, laying back on some of the flowers. "If you can ever visit my world sometime, you've gotta see it for real!" he exclaimed. "The smell is amazing!"

"I hope I can come see it someday!" Knuckles went up to him and laid down beside him. "I still dunno how we're having the same dream, but it's awesome!"

"Yeah, I still can't figure it out," Sonic said. "Maybe there's some sorta time-space stuff goin' on, who knows."

"Well, I hope it happens again soon!" Knuckles replied. "'Cause this has been a lot of fun."

"Huh, I didn't even think about that." He glanced over at Knuckles. "Y'think we'll dream together again tomorrow? Er... today? I dunno what day it is; dream clocks aren't a thing." He giggled.

Knuckles put a hand to his chin. "Hmmm... I'm not sure. What do you think?"

Sonic sat up, smiling softly. "I hope so! Besides, we did it once, so it could happen again, right?" he asked in reply.

He really _did_ want to meet up with Knuckles again. He was fun, kind, and Sonic just overall liked the guy's attitude. Even if it was just in a dream, he wanted to keep being friends with him.

"Right!" Knuckles replied. "So, um... how much longer do you think we have? Dream time is so weird..."

Sonic frowned at the thought. "I dunno. I never really timed my dreams before. I'm sure Tails would give me some long explanation about how long it takes to start dreaming and whatever else, but..." He shook his head, his smile coming back as he faced Knuckles. "Let's not think about it. Let's just have fun until somethin' happens, okay?"

"Okay!" Knuckles smiled.

The two played and discovered more about each other's world for who knew how long. They weren't sure if time worked differently there or not, but they still planned on making the most of whatever time they had.

Eventually, while they were deciding on what to do next, Sonic suddenly started to fade.

"Hm?" He looked over himself, starting to feel a bit lightheaded. "A-ah... I guess I'm startin' to wake up."

"Aw..." Knuckles looked sad. He too was also starting to fade.

Sonic gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it. I bet we'll see each other again!" He held out his hand for a handshake.

Knuckles shook his hand, smiling back. "See ya!"

All of a sudden, the world around Sonic faded and he found himself back in his bedroom.

"Hm..." He stared at the hand that Knuckles had shaken, then flexed his fingers. "...Yeah. We'll see each other again."

And with that, he sped out of his room.


	2. Night 2

Time passed, nighttime slowly approaching as Sonic came through the door. He rubbed an arm, which was covered in a few cuts from his most recent battle with Eggman. _Heh, guess I was a little too careless this time..._

He groaned, then collapsed on his bed, shoving his face into the pillow. Soon enough, sleep took over, and he found himself back in the dream world. He stared down, seeing that he still had his injuries, but shrugged it off; he could move around as much as he wanted here since it wasn't technically his physical body.

"Yo, Knuckles!" he called out, wondering if he'd get a response. _Maybe he's not asleep yet?_

Knuckles soon appeared in the dream world as well. He smiled wide when he saw Sonic.

"Hey, you're here!"

He ran up to him, but then stopped when he saw Sonic's injuries. "Oh no, what happened?" he asked in concern.

Sonic chuckled weakly. "I got a little beat up in a battle with Egghead today." He waved a hand dismissively. "No worries. This is just the usual battle damage I get when I'm reckless."

Knuckles frowned. "Here." He conjured up some bandages and started wrapping them on Sonic's injuries. "I know this won't help you for real, but at least I can help you here."

Sonic blushed, looking away and sheepishly scratching his cheek. "E-eheh, y'don't have to, but thanks."

"No prob." Knuckles finished putting the bandages on. "So, whacha wanna do first?"

"Ah, well, I've been thinkin'... we can do whatever we want, right?" he asked.

"Yeah?" Knuckles replied.

"Sooooo..." Sonic smirked, a large racetrack suddenly replacing the empty white void. "Does that mean you can be as fast as me?"

He grabbed Knuckles and threw him into the air, catching him with no effort at all. "And I can be as strong as you?"

"Oooh, I never thought of that!" Knuckles exclaimed. He walked a small distance away from Sonic, then took off running. He was going faster than he ever had in the real world!

Sonic followed after him. "Nice, huh?" he asked with a wink.

"Yeah!" Knuckles replied.

 _What a rush!_ he thought to himself.

Sonic smirked. "Let's see who dreams bigger then!" He sped up, passing Knuckles up easily.

Knuckles sped up too, actually managing to pass up Sonic.

"Is that as fast as you can run?" he teased.

Sonic's eyes widened. "H-heh, you really aren't that bad!"

He slowed down for a split second, then took off in a huge burst of speed. He wasn't quite determined to beat Knuckles, but he wanted to know who the better dreamer was.

Knuckles concentrated hard, and ran even faster than he'd ever thought possible, even in the dream world.

"Hey, Sonic!" he greeted over his shoulder when he saw the hedgehog behind him.

"Look what I can do!" He turned himself around so he was facing Sonic, but still ran in the same direction.

 _Geez, he's really good. I don't actually know if I'll be able to top that,_ Sonic thought, impressed.

He paused, then smirked and readied himself. "Oh yeah?"

He jumped forward, reaching Knuckles and tackling him to the ground, wrestling with him despite the size difference.

"Oof!" Knuckles yelled out in surprise.

"Oh, so that's how it's gonna be!" he said with a grin.

"That's how it's _gotta_ be!" Sonic exclaimed, grinning mischievously at Knuckles.

Knuckles wrestled him back, grinning and laughing as the two rolled around on the "ground".

"W-whoa, heey!" Sonic laughed as well, though still had the disadvantage even in the dream due to his size.

Eventually, he gave up, unable to change his physical form in the dream world for some reason. "Okay, okay, you win!" he said through his laughter.

A champion belt appeared around Knuckles' waist.

Knuckles stood proudly with his hands on his hips, and a big grin on his face.

"Aw yeah, that's what I'm talkin' about!"

Sonic sat up and crossed his arms. "Just you wait! I'll beat you in... somethin', I'm sure!" he told him with a big grin.

"Oh yeah?" Knuckles crossed his arms and smirked. "Bring it!"

" _Now_?" Sonic asked. He smiled sheepishly, unable to think of any sort of competition.

"Hmmm... swimming?" Knuckles suggested. "I'm not that good at it in real life, but maybe I can do it here!"

"S-swimming?" Sonic asked. He smiled nervously, then stood up and held his hands up in defense. "Ah, nah. I'm all competitioned-out for now, I-I think," he lied.

"Aw, you sure?" Knuckles asked, a little disappointed. He didn't really seem to notice Sonic's nervousness.

Sonic grimaced, rubbing an arm. "Uh, maybe?" He looked back at Knuckles, hating to disappoint him. "Or... oh! Actually, I think I'm leanin' more towards, uh... a flying competition!" he said.

"Flying competition?" Knuckles seemed interested now. "How does it work?"

"I've flown a little in dreams before," Sonic said, glad to be off the earlier subject; the last thing he needed was his new friend figuring out that he was scared of deep water. "It's a little hard, but keep focus and we'll be fine," he explained.

"Okay!" Knuckles replied eagerly. "When do we start?"

"How about right now?"

Sonic stomped his foot on the ground, and a sudden pillar rose from the ground, placing them extremely high into the sky.

"Are you Knuckles enough to jump?" Sonic taunted with a wide smirk.

"Um, I think so...?" Knuckles replied in confusion, not quite understanding the expression. "I mean, I _am_ Knuckles... right?"

Sonic chuckled. "I mean that the Knuckles in my world's pretty brave. Might be a dream, but..." He smirked and walked backwards to the edge. "…gotta have guts to fall!"

He fell backwards, then turned himself forward and flew up just before he hit the ground. He stopped and hovered as he got back up to Knuckles' height, looking over his shoulder to him. "Give it a try, Knux!"

"Uh... okay," Knuckles replied nervously.

He let himself fall, then stopped in midair and floated back up to Sonic. "Like that?"

"Perfect!" Sonic exclaimed. Knuckles wasn't exactly graceful, but Sonic was fine with that; the guy didn't need grace to win. "And now we set the scenery."

He looked around, and the white void suddenly changed to a sky setting, with puffy white clouds all around them.

"And then we go!" Sonic took off, flying perfectly across the sky.

Knuckles flew after him best he could.

"Woo-hoo, this is fun!" he yelled out, laughing happily.

"Glad ya like it!" Sonic exclaimed. He smirked, then flew in front of Knuckles, now flying with his back facing the ground. "That the best you got?" he teased, getting Knuckles back for his taunt earlier.

Knuckles grinned. "Nope!"

He flew a little higher, then took off in a burst of speed.

"Haha, hey! Stop right there!" Sonic shouted, flying after and soon catching up with him. He twirled around him in a large circle, then smiled. "This really is fun! You're fun!" he exclaimed. "Heh, I wish you lived in my world; then we could have fun for real!"

Knuckles blushed at this. Unfortunately, this brief distraction caused him to lose focus, and he let out a yell as he started to fall.

"K-Knux!" Sonic cried out. He flew downwards, getting under his friend, then supported Knuckles as best as he could so he could get his flight back. He knew it was just a dream, so he wouldn't have gotten hurt, but he couldn't help himself. "You alright? What happened?" he asked.

"I-I dunno," Knuckles said. "I just... lost my focus, I guess."

"Here, hold my hand then," Sonic told him, holding his hand out after he got Knuckles flying again. "That should help."

Knuckles took his hand.

 _...why am I blushing?_

Sonic smiled. "Better?"

Knuckles nodded. "Thanks."

"Cool! ...So, does this mean I win?" Sonic asked, pointing to himself with his free hand. "You fell, after all."

"Yeah, I guess it does," Knuckles said, smiling sheepishly.

"Yes!" Sonic excitedly summoned a crown on top of his head. "You were doin' really good though," he complimented.

"Thanks!" Knuckles smiled. "You weren't bad either," he added with a wink.

Sonic chuckled. "Of course I wasn't! I won, didn't I?" he said playfully.

He looked around at the clouds, then released Knuckles' hand and flew up into one, hiding himself.

"Sonic?" Knuckles flew up to the cloud. "What are you doing?"

There was short silence before Sonic suddenly popped out of the cloud, holding a small part of it in his hands. He reached back, then threw it at Knuckles. It hit his face and burst into small puffs of cloud, then faded away. Sonic looked extremely amused.

Knuckles smirked, grabbing part of another cloud and throwing it at Sonic.

"Whoa!"

Sonic narrowly avoided it, smirking back at Knuckles and throwing another piece of his cloud. "You'll have to catch me first, Knux!"

He dove off the cloud, then flew off.

Knuckles flew after him, grinning wide. He soon managed to catch up to Sonic, and the hedgehog found himself trapped in a big bear hug.

"W-wha..." Sonic was surprised that Knuckles caught up to him so quickly. He looked up at the echidna, blushing slightly from the hug. "Look at you, dreamin' so well," he said with a giggle. "I'm impressed!"

Knuckles smiled proudly. "Thanks!"

Sonic stared down at the ground, then cleared all the scenery around them, returning the world to a white void. "So, did you... y'know, tell anyone about this?" he asked.

Knuckles shook his head. "Nope, not yet."

"Me neither," Sonic admitted, getting out of Knuckles' grasp and floating towards the ground. "Not sure Tails would even believe in this kinda thing. It's just so weird!" He gestured his arms outward for emphasis. "I've never had so much control over a dream, but I can't change what my body looks like. It feels so much like a dream, yet at the same time... it doesn't."

"I think I know what you mean," Knuckles replied. "It feels real, but also... not real?"

Sonic nodded, turning to him. "Yeah yeah, exactly!" He sighed, laughing softly to himself. "I keep tellin' myself not to get hung up over it, but I can't help bein' a little curious."

"Well, whatever's going on, I'm not complainin'!" Knuckles said with a wink.

Sonic winked back. "Me neither."

He flexed his fingers, then made a guitar appear in his hands, being purple and having multiple handles. "Hey, nice! I always wanted one that looked like this; now I can just make it whenever I want." He played a few notes.

"Nice!"

Knuckles conjured up a piano. He sat down and played a quick warm-up scale.

Sonic's eyes widened in surprise. He set his guitar down, then climbed up on the piano and sat down, staring at Knuckles. "No way! You play the piano?" he asked.

"Yep!" Knuckles replied proudly.

"Can you play for me a little?" Sonic asked, his eyes practically sparkling with interest.

"Sure!" Knuckles smiled.

He set his fingers to the piano keys-and instantly, the dream world was filled with the sound of beautiful music.

Sonic was relaxed by the sound. If he wasn't already sleeping, Knuckles' playing probably would've made him fall asleep on the spot.

He smiled softly, swaying back and forth to the music. The song sounded familiar to him. Did his and Knuckles' worlds have the same music? He wasn't sure, but he knew the lyrics.

He cleared his throat, then began to sing in tune with Knuckles' playing.

Knuckles was surprised when he heard Sonic join in, but he certainly wasn't complaining.

The two created a wonderful harmony. It wasn't the dream making it happen either; they were just using the best of their ability.

As the song ended, Sonic looked over at Knuckles and simply smiled.

Knuckles smiled back. "You have that song in your world too?"

Sonic nodded. "Yeah! I guess our world has some of the same stuff besides us and our friends," he mused.

"That's so cool!" Knuckles grinned. "Hey, you sing really good!"

Sonic blushed. "Y'think? I don't sing that often actually," he admitted.

"Well, you should!" Knuckles replied.

Sonic smiled sheepishly, flattered by Knuckles' words. "Heh, I'll think about it," he said.

"...Oh yeah!" He stared at his hands, and a small flower crown appeared on it. He placed it on Knuckles' head, chuckling. "Since Cream can't meet cha, I'll give ya this in her place.

Knuckles giggled. Then, he looked confused.

"Uh... who's Cream?"

It didn't surprise Sonic for Knuckles to ask that, as he hadn't been introduced to any house belonging to Vanilla and Cream in Knuckles' world. "She's a really good friend of mine. She's a little tan and orange rabbit, but she's got the biggest heart and she loves making new—"

Sonic was interrupted as the world suddenly started to shake. He was sent tumbling off the piano, letting out a small yelp of surprise.

"Sonic! Sonic, wake up!" a voice echoed throughout the void.

"Tails?" Sonic asked, though knowing that the fox probably wouldn't hear him. "He must be shakin' me," he assumed, noticing that he was starting to fade.

"Aw, but we were having so much fun!" Knuckles pouted.

"Don't worry. I'll see ya next time!" Sonic assured. He smiled at Knuckles, then quickly found himself sitting up with a start, back in his bedroom.

"Tails, what's up?" he asked, wondering what could be so important.

"Sonic, Eggman's got a new plan and—" Tails paused, looking downwards. "You... actually let someone bandage you up?"

"Huh?" Sonic glanced down at his body, seeing that the bandages Knuckles had placed on him were still there. "...Huh..."

Meanwhile, Knuckles also woke up. He stretched and yawned, then realized he felt something on his head.

"Huh?"

He took the object off of his head, and was surprised when he saw what it was. It was the flower crown that Sonic had given him!


	3. Night 3

When Knuckles went to sleep that next night, he was confused. Instead of the empty void that he and Sonic usually met in, he found himself... underwater?

 _Well_ _,_ _that's different,_ he thought. _I'd better find Sonic._

Back up on the surface, Sonic was flailing about helplessly, desperately trying to swim. He seemed to be in a state of panic, completely unaware as to if this was a dream or not. Something caught hold of his leg, and he was quickly dragged down into the water.

Knuckles saw a strange, shadowy figure in the 'water', then gasped when he saw it drag something down with it: Sonic! The poor hedgehog looked completely terrified as he was pulled deeper and deeper into the water.

Knuckles 'swam' up to the shadow creature and punched it. It loosened its grip on Sonic in surprise, and Knuckles was able to yank Sonic out of its grasp. He concentrated, and the shadow disappeared with a shriek. He then focused even harder, and soon made the water disappear as well.

"Sonic, are you okay?" he asked.

Sonic panted heavily as they landed on the white ground of the void, slightly shaken up by what happened. He looked up at Knuckles, confused. "K-Knux? What are you..."

He glanced around, quickly realizing that he'd just been in a nightmare and nothing more. He sighed, lowering his head. "Ah, geez..."

"Were you having a bad dream?" Knuckles asked softly.

"...Y-yeah," Sonic admitted. "Eggman had this underwater base, and I almost didn't make it out in one piece," he explained. "I..." He sighed again, refusing to make eye contact with Knuckles. "I'm afraid of the water. I can't swim and I sink real easily."

 _So that's why he didn't want to do that competition..._

"Well, you're safe now." Knuckles smiled softly and gave him a light hug.

Sonic blushed. "Y-yeah, thanks." He sighed, looking ashamed. "Sorry. I didn't want you to know..."

"It's okay," Knuckles replied. "Nothin' to be embarrassed about."

"Yeah there is," Sonic argued. "I'm supposed to be the hero of Mobius, but I can't swim to save my life." He huffed, relaxing against Knuckles to get some form of comfort, even if he couldn't quite feel the warmth.

"Hey, nobody's perfect," Knuckles pointed out. "I can't even read! Or do math... or argue... or understand things..." He sighed.

Sonic looked up at him. "Huh? But you seem smart enough to me," he argued.

Knuckles shook his head. "Nah, if I were smart, I'd be able to do all that stuff, wouldn't I?"

Sonic shrugged. "Y'don't have to do all that stuff. I don't care if y'can or not," he assured. "You're fun and really cool to hang out with. That's enough for me."

Knuckles blushed. "R-really?"

He cleared his throat. "And I don't mind that you can't swim," he replied. "You're still an awesome and fun guy!"

Sonic chuckled. "Thanks!"

He paused, then leaned further against Knuckles, clearly still a little shaken up by the earlier experience, even if he knew it was just a nightmare now.

Knuckles put an arm around him and smiled softly.

Sonic blushed at the gesture. "...Hey, Knux?"

"Yeah?" Knuckles responded.

"...Can we stay like this a little longer?" he asked, though a little shyly.

"Oh, uh... s-sure." Knuckles wasn't expecting this, but he didn't object. His cheeks were flushed again.

 _Why do I keep blushing around him?_ he wondered.

Sonic didn't quite understand why he asked Knuckles that, but he just knew that he didn't want to leave Knuckles' hold. As it turned out, Knuckles didn't either.

They stayed that way for the rest of their dream.


	4. The Next Morning

That morning, Knuckles had been deep in thought. His feelings were confusing him, so he decided he'd go talk to Amy. After all, who better to discuss feelings with than with the village's (self-proclaimed) therapist?

When he got to her door, he hesitated for a moment, then knocked.

Amy opened the door after a few seconds, raising a brow at Knuckles confusedly. "Oh, um, hey there! Do you need something, Knuckles?" she asked, as Knuckles didn't visit often.

"U-um, yeah," Knuckles replied nervously. "Can I come in?"

"Oh, sure!" Amy said, gesturing inside. "Make yourself at home."

"Thanks." Knuckles went inside and sat down on the couch.

"Can...can I talk to you about, um... weird, confusing feelings?" he asked awkwardly.

Amy sat next to him and tilted her head. "What kind of weird, confusing feelings?" she asked in reply.

"Well..." Knuckles thought of how to put it. "I have this friend, and whenever I'm around him, I feel all weird... like my heart beats faster, and I can't stop blushing."

He glanced at Amy in worry. "A-am I getting sick or something?"

Amy paused, taking a moment to just stare at Knuckles and process what he said, then giggled. "I don't think you're sick at all! I think you've got your first crush!" she exclaimed.

"I do?" Knuckles said in surprise. "...what's a crush?"

"You're in love with him, Knuckles!" Amy replied simply.

"... _oh_ ," was all Knuckles could say in reply. He was stunned.

 _I'm...in love?_

It was a lot for him to take in.

"That's so sweet," Amy cooed, clasping her hands together and smiling wide.

Knuckles got up. "Well, um... th-thanks, Amy. I...I'm gonna go think about this for a while..."

Amy wasn't surprised by his nervousness. "Alright! Be sure to come back if you need any more help, okay?"

"Okay, I will," Knuckles replied as he headed for the door. "Thanks again."

"No problem! See ya!" Amy said, waving to him.

After he left, Knuckles sat down by his lifting equipment to think.

 _I'm in love with_ _the_ _other dimension_ _'s_ _Sonic? Does...does th_ _at_ _mean I should confess?_

He became really nervous as he thought about it. _But...what if he rejects me? Would he even want to be friends anymore?_

He shook his head. _Probably not. Once he sees how dumb I am, he'll just look down on me like everyone else!_

Knuckles now felt very anxious about tonight's visit.


	5. Night 4

Sonic, unlike Knuckles, was much more positive towards going to bed that night. He enjoyed seeing Knuckles so much that he had started really looking forward to sleeping.

Though, when he entered the dream world, he instantly noticed that something was wrong. Not only was most of the white void filled in with Knuckles' village, but things were... _distorted_.

"Knuckles?" Sonic called out softly, looking around. He ran for a bit, then stopped and hid behind a tree as he saw Knuckles standing there, surrounded by a bunch of strange black figures. Only... Knuckles seemed different, being much smaller and looking like a child. Sonic stayed quiet, not sure what was happening.

"I-I'm sorry," Knuckles said to the figures. His voice also sounded like that of a child, and his eyes were full of fear.

"You always say that!" one of the dark figures spat back, in a frightening, almost demonic voice. "But then you always go and screw up again!"

"Why do you have to be so dumb?" one of the other figures said. "Everyone else your age can figure this stuff out but you; why can't you?"

"Were you dropped on your head as a baby or something?" yet another figure said.

"More like thrown against the wall several times!" the second figure replied with a mean laugh.

The young Knuckles was starting to cry. "I try, okay! I try to understand things, I t-try to l-learn... i-it's just h-harder for me..."

"Oh please," the first figure said, "a _toddler_ could figure out how to put on mittens faster than you have!"

"Or use a toothbrush," the second figure added.

"Or just think in general!" another figure said. "'I'm so confused all the time!' Yeah, sounds like a stupid person to me."

"I'm sorry!" the little Knuckles shouted, sobbing hysterically. "I'm sorry for the way I am, but I can't help it! Please just leave me alone!" He fell to his knees and cried loudly, his hands covering his face.

Sonic didn't have to think twice. He emerged from his hiding spot, curling into a spindash and attacking all of the figures in a swift motion.

"Get away from him!" he demanded, landing in front of the small Knuckles.

He sat down next to the young echidna, then reached over and pulled him close. "Knux, it's alright. They're not real, I've got you..."

Knuckles slightly moved his hands from his face.

"S-Sonic?" He sniffled.

Sonic smiled at him. "Hey, bud. Everything alright?" he asked softly, lightly petting Knuckles' head to distract from the black figures around them.

Knuckles glanced down, avoiding Sonic's gaze. "N-no..." He sniffled again. "Sonic, I-I'm scared."

"Why, Knux?" Sonic asked, placing a gentle hand on Knuckles' cheek in hopes of soothing him.

Knuckles blushed at the gesture. He was too scared to confess to him... but there _was_ something he _could_ tell him.

"I-it's just..." He sniffed. "People h-have always said that I was s-stupid, because I-I don't understand th-things that everyone e-else does..." He was still sobbing uncontrollably, and couldn't continue.

Sonic chuckled, though there was no sense of teasing in it. "That's not your fault, pal. I can tell that ya try really hard. I dunno what happened in your past or anything, but y'don't have to be as smart as everyone else is." He wrapped his free arm around the echidna as well, hoping to calm him. "'Sides, I like you how you are right now. Wouldn't change a thing," he assured.

"R-really?" Knuckles looked up at Sonic, tears still streaming down his cheeks. He suddenly felt very small next to Sonic.

Sonic nodded, smiling down at Knuckles. "Really, I mean it!" He used his gloved hand to wipe some of the echidna's tears away. "I've never had so much fun in a dream before. Why would I wanna change a single thing about ya?"

Knuckles smiled through his tears. He wrapped his arms around Sonic and hugged him. "Thanks, Sonic."

The dark figures around them began to fade one by one.

Sonic flushed at the hug. "E-eheh, no problem."

He looked around, then slowly began to watch the village fade away. He cuddled Knuckles closer to keep him soothed, but he wondered if his friend could hear his heart beating. _What's wrong with me? It's just a hug..._

Even though he couldn't feel the warmth of his friend's body, Knuckles was still comforted by his close presense. He hoped Sonic couldn't see him blushing, though. Having him this close was making him feel like there were butterflies in his stomach.

Sonic couldn't help feeling bad for Knuckles. He didn't know what went on in the other world, but judging by what he saw, not everyone was exactly nice to him. He sighed softly, continuing to pet Knuckles as gently as he could, trying to ignore the warmth in his cheeks.

Neither of them could tell how much time had passed, but as Knuckles' tears slowed down, he was slowly growing back to his normal size.

Sonic let out a small sound of surprise, then released Knuckles, watching him return to normal. He chuckled softly, almost missing being the taller one. "Welcome back," he told him.

Knuckles smiled. "Thanks," he said softly, his voice also being back to normal.

Sonic held Knuckles' hand and giggled despite the blush on his face. "You alright now?"

Knuckles nodded. "Yeah, thanks to you."

"Hey, it's no problem," Sonic told him, waving a hand dismissively. "You're my friend; of course I want cha to feel better."

"You're the nicest friend I've ever had," Knuckles admitted, blushing again.

"I am?" Sonic asked in surprise, his eyes widening as his blush became redder. He smiled sheepishly, then released Knuckles' hand, not quite sure what he was feeling.

"Mmhmm!" Knuckles nodded again. "Even my world's Sonic gets impatient with me a lot, but _you_ ; you're more, um... understanding."

Sonic blushed further. "Uh, ehehe, thanks," he said, taking a small step back. He couldn't understand it, but he just felt flustered and the weird feeling in his stomach was getting stronger.

"You alright there?" Knuckles asked, a bit concerned.

"Y-yeah!" Sonic replied. "Just, er... I-I gotta go!" He quickly turned and dashed off, feeling like he needed to clear his head and sort out his thoughts.

"Oh... okay." Knuckles was a bit sad that Sonic had just run off like that, but he figured that his friend would be back soon. He hoped so, anyway.

He conjured up a flower garden and lay down in the middle of it, waiting for Sonic's return.

Sonic ran as fast as he could, getting enough distance away that he couldn't see Knuckles anymore. He then sat down, sighing. _Geez, what's going on with me. I can't be..._ He shook his head in an attempt to banish the thought. _No, no way! I know what Vanilla told me that one time, but I'm_ not _in love! I'm not!_

Every attempt to deny it just made it seem more obvious. Sonic felt stupid; he'd literally only met the guy in his dream. Even if he knew he was real... would Knuckles even accept that? It was such a weird thing to think about...

 _Augh... I can't do this,_ he thought, shutting his eyes tight. He pounded on the sides of his head, trying to force himself awake.

 _...Sorry, Knuckles._

When he opened his eyes again, he was back in his bedroom. He shoved his face into his pillow, wondering just what he'd do next time he had to face Knuckles. He couldn't run and he couldn't just keep avoiding him. He just knew he'd have to make a decision before he met up with Knuckles again.

Knuckles, meanwhile, felt a 'disturbance' of some kind. He couldn't explain how if he tried, but he knew that Sonic was gone. The flowers he was laying on became hazy, no longer seeming 'real'.

 _He must've woken up,_ Knuckles realized. _B-but...he didn't even say goodbye..._

Knuckles sighed sadly. He spent the rest of his sleeping hours lying alone in his imaginary garden.


	6. Night 5

It took Sonic a whole day by himself to figure things out. He loved Knuckles; he _knew_ he did. He still thought of himself as a generally cool guy, but the sudden matter of having a crush made him worry.

 _...I'll tell him tonight,_ he decided with determination. _If he feels awkward for a while, I can live with that... I guess._

He didn't know if he was on a time limit or not; for all he knew, he could've already lost his chance and last night was the last dream he had to spend with Knuckles. He'd feel even worse if he didn't tell him and left him hanging on a sad note like he had the previous night.

With that in mind, he collapsed in bed as the day ended and dozed off, landing back in the white void. His nerves were high, but hey, he was Sonic. He could handle anything... right?

He rose a forest from the ground, knowing that nature was always something that helped him relax.

"U-uh—" He cleared his throat, trying to make sure he wouldn't stutter. "Yo, Knuckles!" he called, semi-hoping to get a response as he walked around.

Knuckles soon appeared in front of him. "Oh, hi," he greeted. He sounded much less enthusiastic than usual.

"O-oh, uh, yo!" _Wait, I already said 'yo'..._

Sonic swallowed nervously, just barely noticing Knuckles' shift in tone. "Hey, you alright?" he asked. "If this is a bad time, I... erm..."

"I'm fine," Knuckles replied. "Are you okay? You seem nervous."

"Yeah, w-well..." Sonic took a breath, then gazed at him. "I have somethin' to tell ya..."

"Go ahead," Knuckles replied.

"A-alright..." Sonic mentally braced himself. This was it. Even if he could take it back now, his mind wasn't giving him any exits. He had to say it.

"Knuckles... I like—" He shook his head. "I have a crush on—" He slammed his hands against his forehead, then finally just said it. "I love you! I-I think I love you, so..." His voice trailed off as he stared at the echidna sheepishly. He hadn't planned anything to follow it with, so he winged it. "I mean, we haven't hung out for long, and I'm sorry for runnin' away last night, but I couldn't stop myself. I never felt like this before and I was just confused and worried about what you'd think..." he admitted. "So... there ya go."

Knuckles stared at him for a moment. Then, he burst out laughing.

"Let me get this straight; _you_ want to date _me_? Why would I date a guy who's so impatient and reckless that he's always putting his 'friends' in danger?" He made air quotes with his fingers on 'friends'. "And why would I be interested in a guy that I only see in my dreams anyway? I'd rather date someone that I can see in real life, ya know?"

Sonic stepped back, surprised and clearly hurt by Knuckles' response. "W-what do you mean? They really are my friends! I care about each and every one of them! That stuff—" He looked downwards, rubbing an arm. "That stuff's all in the past. I... didn't mean to... it's different now." He couldn't argue against Knuckles' 'dream' statement. It was true, and he couldn't deny that it would've been odd.

Knuckles huffed. "But can anyone trust you after you've put them all in danger? Can you trust yourself?"

Sonic opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. He had very few insecurities, but Knuckles just managed to hit them all. He lowered his gaze, staring at the ground. "...We can still be friends, can't we?" he asked quietly.

Knuckles snorted. "I don't think so."

Sonic's shoulders slumped. "Right... prob'ly shoulda figured," he said sadly.

"And I'm not gonna say goodbye, since _you_ didn't even bother to last night."

And with that, Knuckles walked off into the distance, soon disappearing.

Sonic wanted to reach out and ask him to stop, but found he just didn't have the voice for it.

 _How could things have gone so wrong...?_

He sighed, then sat down on the ground, his ears flopping down as he put his hands to his face.

Suddenly though, he felt a pair of strong arms around him.

"Sonic..." the voice of Knuckles said softly, but instead of the bitter and angry tone he'd had just moments ago, he now sounded kind and gentle.

"K-Knux...?"

Sonic stared down at the arms encircling him, then looked up as best as he could. "What are you..." His confused voice trailed off. He started to figure it out, but was still too stunned to really think straight.

"It's okay, Sonic," Knuckles said gently. "You were just having a bad dream."

Sonic paused, absorbing the information, then laughed weakly, his breath extremely shaky. "H-how could I have been so dumb... I never told you any of that stuff about my adventures. I was so worried about how you'd react, that I... wasn't even thinkin' straight."

"It's okay," Knuckles assured him. "Did...did you really mean what you said? A-about... l-loving me?"

Sonic inhaled sharply, stiffening at the question. He didn't want to be rejected again. No, not again.

He shut his eyes, then nodded uneasily. "Y...yeah... every word."

Knuckles' heart leaped for joy. He hugged Sonic tighter, nuzzling him affectionately.

"I guess you beat me to confessing," he said with a chuckle.

Sonic let out a small gasp at the hug. "W-wait a sec! You mean you actually... love me back?" he asked.

"Of course I do!" Knuckles replied. "But I was worried that you didn't like me back," he admitted.

Sonic smiled at him, glad that he wasn't the only one who'd been worried. "Who _wouldn't_ like you?" he asked with a small giggle. "They'd be the dumb ones, not you."

Knuckles blushed. "A-ah, shucks..."

Sonic snuggled into Knuckles' chest. "Heh, I'd ask if this is just a dream, but..." He laughed.

Knuckles laughed too.

He smiled sadly. "I...I wish we could meet in real life."

Sonic went silent at that, looking down.

"...Then I'll make it happen," he stated simply. "We'll get into the same world together somehow, I promise."

"But how?" Knuckles asked.

"I'm gonna find a way!" Sonic said, this time with a determined smile. "I'll talk to Tails and me and him'll figure out a way."

He lightly stroked Knuckles' arm. "I want it too, y'know. I wanna hug you for real." He blushed as he said it, but he really meant it.

"Me too," Knuckles replied with a smile. Then his face flushed. "A-and I also kinda want to, um... k-kiss you... i-if that would be okay."

Sonic flushed just as badly. "W-well yeah, of course it is." He placed a finger to Knuckles' lips. "The _second_ one of us gets to the other's world, I swear we will."

Knuckles smiled even brighter. "R-really? Ya mean it?"

Sonic nodded. "Absolutely!" He lightly poked Knuckles' chest. "And the instant you get to my world, you're gettin' a key to my house, got it?"

Knuckles grinned. "Got it!"

Sonic couldn't help himself. As soon as he felt like Knuckles' grip was loose enough, he jumped up, holding onto Knuckles' shoulders to support himself and touching their noses. "Hello! Heh, I like it up here," he joked.

Knuckles blushed. He giggled softly.

Sonic giggled back, enjoying seeing Knuckles blush. He pulled away, then landed back down on the ground. He stared down at his bandages, admiring Knuckles' handiwork at how they were still on him despite the water and cuts he had to go through.

Then, he got an idea. "Hey, these bandages are from you, right?" he asked. "I wonder if they've got some sort of properties or something from your world..."

Knuckles tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I dunno. I mean, y'think Tails could scan these and get some sorta location on your world?" Sonic asked. "...Oh yeah, I didn't even tell you; when you put those bandages on me a few days ago, I woke up and I was actually still wearin' 'em!" he exclaimed. "Did anything like that happen to you too?"

"Yeah, actually!" Knuckles remembered. "When I woke up that one time, I was still wearing the flower crown you gave me!"

"Then maybe my Tails and your Tails can run some weird readings or something and figure this out!" He held Knuckles' hands excitedly. "I bet they could find a way in no time!"

Knuckles smiled wide as he realized that Sonic was right. "Yeah! I'll go ask my Tails about it first chance I get!"

"I will too! It'll probably take some convincin', but Tails is my best friend! We'll work somethin' out."

He reached his hand out for a handshake, but quickly remembered who he was talking to and outstretched his arms for a hug instead.

Knuckles threw his arms around him in his signature bear hug.

"I can't wait to hug you for real," he said softly.

Sonic giggled, hugging him back. "I know. Me neither."


	7. Day 1

Once the two had gotten up from their dreams, they put their plans into action. Handing over their supposedly otherworldly objects to the Tails of their respective worlds and explaining the situation, the two foxes got to work, at least with a little more convincing. Knuckles' Tails had needed a bit more persuasion, but gave in after realizing that Sonic's flower crown did indeed have different properties.

It took a few days of solid effort due to fights with each Eggman delaying the process, but each Tails finally completed their machines; ones that would allow crossing over between worlds. During the dreams that Sonic and Knuckles shared in the meantime, it was decided that Knuckles would go to Sonic's world.

In Knuckles' world, Tails noticed a small flicker on his screen and smiled. "That's the signal! That's the signal from the other Tails!" he exclaimed excitedly. He turned to Knuckles, his tails swaying in excitement. "Alright, Knuckles, it's ready. Just stand on that platform over there and I'll beam you over. Also, don't forget that you can come back anytime you want, okay?"

"Okay!" Knuckles replied with a grin.

He got up on the platform, nearly bursting with excitement.

Tails gave him a thumb's up, then pulled a level on his machine. The platform below Knuckles glowed bright, and the echidna vanished.

Suddenly, he found himself in a completely different lab. Tails seemed to be standing in the exact same place, but his position was different and he wore a different outfit. Not that Knuckles would've taken much notice of it though; what was only a few meters in front of him was what caught his attention more.

Sonic stood there, eyes lit up with excitement as he gazed back at him. "Knuckles..." he muttered softly, a soft smile forming on his face.

All of a sudden, the hedgehog rushed towards him, intent on keeping his promise.

Knuckles ran towards him as well, feeling light as a feather. He scooped up Sonic in his arms, and kissed him right on the lips.

Sonic gripped Knuckles' shoulders excitedly, kissing back full-force; it'd been the absolute _worst_ experience having to wait to kiss him like he'd been wanting to. Now though, the wait didn't matter because it was worth it. He cherished the kiss, along with the warmth and texture of Knuckles' fur, which he hadn't been able to feel before.

Knuckles felt a swarm of butterflies in his stomach as he sank into the kiss. He felt like he'd been waiting for an eternity; now, the moment was finally here. The warm feeling of Sonic's fur against him made it even better.

However, Sonic quickly broke up the moment as he remembered that there was someone else in the room with them. He slowly glanced over, seeing a shocked Tails standing not too far away, his face slightly red from embarrassment and the fur on his tails puffing out.

"R-right," Sonic muttered, his face turning red as well. He got down, then gestured to Knuckles. "Tails, this is Knuckles. Knuckles, Tails, oookay…" He quickly grabbed Knuckles' hand and escorted him out of the lab.

"Wow," Knuckles said as they stepped out into the city. "It looks even cooler in real life!"

Sonic smiled. "Yup! Always nice to feel the air on your face too."

Like an excited child, Sonic tugged harder on Knuckles' hand and walked a little faster. "Now c'mon! My house is this way! I promised you a key, right?" he reminded him.

"Oh, right!" Knuckles grinned. He couldn't wait to see Sonic's house for real.

Sonic took Knuckles to his house, then unlocked the door and walked inside. He grabbed a key under a potted plant, then tossed it to Knuckles. "There ya go!"

"Thanks!" Knuckles replied, tucking the key into his hammerspace.

Sonic smiled. "Though... there's one other thing..." he said, gesturing for Knuckles to get down to his level.

Knuckles bent down. "What is it?"

Sonic smiled, then leaned close, whispering a small "I love you" to Knuckles. The only difference was that it was in the ancient echidna language, with the accent perfect and every syllable pronounced just like it should've been.

Knuckles' jaw almost dropped.

"Where did you learn that?" he asked, amazed.

Sonic smiled sheepishly, blushing. "I knew I'd be meeting you soon, so I've been takin' lessons from the other Knuckles," he explained.

"Ohhhhh. Cool!" Knuckles smiled. "I'm really impressed!"

"Good!" Sonic exclaimed. "I just knew I wanted to be prepared for you when ya got here." He placed his hands on his hips proudly. "I also stocked the fridge with grapes."

Knuckles' eyes lit up. "Really? Wow, you thought of everything!"

"Of course! Gotta do my best for ya, right?" Sonic asked with a grin. He sat down on his beanbag chair, then offered Knuckles a seat next to him, echoing back to their very first dream together.

Knuckles sat down next to him.

"Oooh, it's even more comfortable in real life!" he mused. He blushed when he felt the warmth of Sonic's body next to his; another reason as to why it was even better than the dream.

Sonic laughed. "It should be!"

He wrapped an arm around Knuckles' waist, then pulled himself closer, snuggling into his side.

Knuckles also put an arm around Sonic, enjoying their first real cuddle.

"...Y'know, that other you was kinda right," Sonic admitted with a small sigh. "I'm pretty reckless and impulsive. Tails almost got turned into a robot and I nearly got my friends killed a few times." He tightened his grip on Knuckles. "I wouldn't wanna put you in danger."

"Don't worry about me," Knuckles assured him. "I've been in danger plenty of times; I can take care of myself."

"Yeah, I know," Sonic said softly. His smile slowly returned. "That's good, 'cause I'm like some sorta danger magnet."

Knuckles chuckled. "Sounds like a normal day for me and my friends."

"Oh yeah? I guess you're a little safer here then," Sonic said. "Eggman waits most of the time to attack, heh. Once or twice a week, tops."

"Really?" Knuckles was surprised by this. "The Eggman in my world attacks pretty much every day!"

"Yeaaaah... I guess mine's a little more, "blarg, I'm gonna make this huge plan that'll take weeks to put into action and still get beaten by a single blue hedgehog" than yours," Sonic said with an amused smirk.

Knuckles chuckled. "Yeah, my Eggman tries to destroy us all the time, but always fails. I think it's more like a game now, heh."

Sonic giggled. "Sounds familiar."

He crawled onto Knuckles, then gave him a quick kiss. "Now c'mon. We need to make up for all those times in our dreams where we could've been kissin'."

Knuckles grinned. "Sounds good to me!"

And so they did, never leaving each other's side for the rest of the day, too focused on catching up on the time they wanted to spend together.


End file.
